


heart palpitations

by ddullahan



Category: RWBY
Genre: Awkward Romance, Bonding over books, F/F, Fluff, Ruby is a mess and I can Relate, Tumblr Prompt, Weiss is equally a mess but it's all internal screaming and Ruby is none the wiser, as a treat, for those of you that have no idea what i'm talking about, have a library meet-cute, i hope this is your first impression of my writing lmao, i'm posting this to hopefully redeem my reputation from the Cars AU, libraries and lesbians
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-28
Updated: 2020-10-28
Packaged: 2021-03-08 22:08:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,204
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27253942
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ddullahan/pseuds/ddullahan
Summary: i asked for a whiterose prompt because i miss Them, and tumblr user astraskylark bounced into my dms with the cutest fucking prompt i ever did see:Ruby finds that whenever she checks out a book from the library, it's been checked out before by a W. Schnee. With every book she chooses, it seems like the same coincidence, but she never did believe in coincidences. Curiouser still, one day she meets someone who's read all of Ruby's books, too.
Relationships: Ruby Rose/Weiss Schnee
Comments: 24
Kudos: 141





	heart palpitations

**Author's Note:**

> Hi there, I live! I wanted a prompt for whiterose to be gay and cute, and @astraskylark delivered. I have a few more prompts in my inbox that I absolutely want to go through, but this was the first and I'm in love with it XD 
> 
> Forgive me for my Cars AU sins, comments and kudos are beyond appreciated, and as always, don't forget to love each other <3

* * *

The library was solemn that afternoon. Ruby wandered the stacks, breathing in the paper and leather from the shelves around her. The tips of her fingers skimmed the spines, silver eyes drifting over with no real clarity behind them. She pulled a book free from the shelf with the title _The Beast of Vale,_ automatically flipping it open and skimming the inside cover. 

Someone sneezed with the force of a gunshot in the distance and Ruby nearly dropped the book, a flustered apology whispered out of sight. She recovered with a soft giggle, tucking it under her arm. Arching up onto her toes to glance at the other covers, there was a second sneeze and another hasty apology.

Ruby bit her lip to stifle another laugh, pulling a second book free, _Dust Below Dawn,_ and set to reading the inside cover. She pinched that to her side too, reaching for a third book - and a third sneeze rocketed through the quiet library. 

She heard a soft swear nearby and shuffled her books into her hands, curiosity pricking at her skin. She slunk to the end of the aisle, poking her head around the corner. “Bless y-” She choked off mid-sentence, her eyes widening. 

The woman seated amongst the thick red leather couches was far too pretty to be real. Stark white hair draped over her shoulders in silk waves, braided at the temples and leaving the rest to fall loose. White bangs framed her brow, partially covering a thick pale scar over her left eye. Most of her face was covered by a pale blue handkerchief furiously rubbing at her nose, but Ruby could still catch the gem blue eyes squinted against the pressure. They matched the dark and light blues of her three piece suit and matching heels. 

She had a sleek looking laptop on the coffee table in front of her, a lipstick stained coffee cup set beside it. Accompanying the laptop were several blue-bound books stacked as far away from her as possible, without the threat of them falling off the small table.

The woman sniffed daintily, catching Ruby’s movement and hastily folding her handkerchief back into her inside pocket. “Oh -”

“Oh um -” Ruby stammered at the same time, nearly jumping out of her skin as those blue eyes focused completely on her. 

“Did I -”

“Bless you!” Ruby blurted out in a panic.

The woman paused, blinking at her. “...Thank you..?”

“You’re pretty - Welcome!” Ruby squeaked, her heart pounding so hard she was sure she could feel it through the books clutched to her chest. “You’re pretty welcome. Yep.”

An almost invisible smile pitched the corners of the woman’s eyes, amusement coloring her tone. “Pretty welcome. That’s a new one.”

Ruby flushed red to the tips of her ears, a clumsy little laugh bursting from her, unchecked. “Well I’m uh, a new one. New-new person, I mean. We’ve never met before. So I’m new. To you.”

The working percentage of her brain immediately wished to crawl into a hole and never come out again. Thankfully, her flustering seemed to amuse the woman further, prompting a light, stuttering laugh from her red lips. Ruby was surprised with herself, amazed she was still standing beyond the force of that smile. 

“You are.” The woman said evenly. 

Ruby immediately wished she’d worn something nicer to the library, as the weight of those blue eyes skimmed over her attire. Big black boots and black rose stockings lead up to a simple short black dress cinched at the waist and deep red cardigan thrown haphazardly over her shoulders, the tattered ends reaching down to her ankles. The soft red sleeves were pushed up her forearms, black bracelets around her wrists and a simple black choker wrapped around her throat. She didn’t bother with make-up that day, and she bemoaned it silently.

“S-so um.” She shifted awkwardly, the woman’s eyes snapped up to hers immediately, the words sticking in her throat. She swallowed and tried again, clutching her books tighter for sanity. “A-are you um. Okay? Those were some pretty powerful sneezes.”

The woman’s spine stiffened a little, crossing her legs at the knee. Her hands folded over on her lap. One of her heels drifted a little loose, cruxed at the ball of her foot. She had the presence of someone three times her actual size and Ruby could only watch the transformation in awe. 

“I’m fine, thank you for your concern. It seems I’m mildly allergic to the dust in these books. And not the useful kind.” Her lips pursed in the semblance of a frown. 

“Oh, that’s tragic.” Ruby flushed back up her eyes. “I-I mean, not _tragic_ tragic. Just, um. It sucks you can’t smell the paper without sneezing.”

“Yes I...thought the same.” She tilted her head, a few strands of her hair curling over the sharp line of her shoulder. Ruby wondered absently if meeting someone gorgeous was supposed to feel like dying. “Have you read those books before?”

“These?” Ruby looked down at the books in her hands like she’d forgotten they were there. Honestly it was hard to remember anything now that she could breathe. “Uh no, not yet. I was planning to check them out though.”

“ _Dust Below Dawn_ is enjoyable, as long as you don’t mind egregious prose and flowery alliterations.” The woman hummed, her spine relaxing as she reached for her coffee cup. Ruby tried not to stare too hard as her pale throat bobbed with a sip.

“Wow, words.” Ruby murmured under her breath, shell-shocked that she’d missed her entire sentence.

“Alternatively,” She continued, either ignoring or missing Ruby’s lack of attention, “ _The Beast of Vale_ is a masterwork. The author spent a dangerous amount of months near Mount Glenn just researching the properties of the city and grimm surrounding.”

Ruby snapped out of her daze, glancing down at her copy of _The Beast of Vale_ in wonder. Her feet were moving before she even realised it, cardigan sweeping out in a flutter behind her as she dropped into the opposing red couch. She leaned over the books now relocated to her lap, leaning forward eagerly. “Wow so you’ve read both of these before?”

It was only after a beat of silence that Ruby realised how pink the other woman’s cheeks were, how wide her eyes had grown. “I- well yes. I wouldn’t know anything about them if I had no interest.”

“Do you research the authors of all the books you read?” Ruby asked curiously.

“Only the ones I care deeply for. I like knowing the process involved.”

“That’s super neat!”

The woman blinked like she’d just been blindsided. “Thank you?”

“On a scale of one through ten, what would you rate _Dust Below Dawn?”_ Ruby bulldozed on through the conversation, gaining confidence now.

“Six.” The woman replied, almost startled by her own quick response.

“ _The Beast of Vale?”_

“Nine.”

“Okay okay, how about - are these books yours too?” Ruby prodded the small stack closest to her, careful not to jostle the stained coffee cup. 

“They are.” 

“Have you read them already?”

“...Yes.” The woman’s flush crawled higher on her cheeks, her sharp scar imperious amongst the pink.

“Okay,” Ruby flipped the top book over, skimming the title. “What would you rate - oh hey, I’ve read this one! What would you rate _Atlas Knights_?” 

“Ugh, two.” The woman wrinkled her nose. “I read it faster because I wanted it over with. The main character was unbelievably whiny.”

“I dunno, I was under the impression she had a hard time expressing herself.” Ruby hummed, flipping the cover over to the library checkout slip. She found her name, R. Rose, and another below hers, W. Schnee. A bit of recognition itched at the back of her mind.

The woman scoffed. “Well what rating would you give it?”

Ruby’s attention switched on a dime.

“Mm… probably a five.” Ruby frowned. “The world was cool, but even if the main character had a hard time expressing herself, the author didn’t give her a chance to be better. It’s like, she’s saved by her knight, but still a brat. The other characters all know she’s a brat, but none of them talk to her about it. She isn’t given a chance to be a person, she’s just given a flaw and stuck with it for the entire story.”

The woman hummed in reticent agreement, reaching for her coffee again. Ruby pointedly didn’t watch this time, sliding the book aside to look at the one underneath. She made a little curious hum under her breath. 

“I’ve read this one too. What did you think about _Song of Ice and Rust_?”

“Probably rated a seven or eight. I enjoyed the twist immensely.”

Ruby looked up at her with a bright grin, heart thundering uncomfortably in her throat, “It was so good, wasn’t it!?”

She received a small but genuine smile for her enthusiasm. It made her feel like she could fly to the rafters. 

“The dragon really sold it for me, I wasn’t expecting it to be the ancient king.”

“Gods I read that and almost screamed - it was like three in the morning though so I had to contain myself.”

“That must have been hard for you.” The woman said with false sympathy, though her smile remained curled.

“Hey! I’ll have you know Miss -” Ruby glanced on the inside of the cover, finding again her name and the same W. Schnee underneath. “Schnee, I’m perfectly capable of containing myself.”

“This conversation has proved otherwise.” She replied smoothly, though a bit of stiffness had returned to her spine. Her gaze seemed to be searching for something, but Ruby wasn’t really sure what it was she wanted. She just moved on to the last book on the table, a small frown gracing her face.

“Man this is so weird, I’ve literally read all of these.” Ruby said, tilting her head curiously.

“We must have similar tastes in literature.” 

“We must…” Ruby squinted at the inside of the cover, spotting the same W. Schnee below her name. Something itched at the back of her mind again. She dropped the cover closed, swinging open _Dust Till Dawn_ ’s cover. There was the same simple cursive of W. Schnee. 

“Have you read _The Nevermore’s Quarry_?” Ruby asked, suddenly, looking up at her. She knew full well that book wasn’t anywhere near their little table.

The woman blinked, leaning forward curiously. “Yes, I have. How did you-?”

“ _The Harbinger's Sons?”_ Ruby asked, silver eyes widening.

“...Yes?” She looked equally as mystified. She eyes drifted above Ruby’s head in thought. “Have you read _Of Bones and Evil_?” 

“ _Yes_ ,” Ruby breathed, her grin growing wider by the second. 

“ _Fortune’s Fallacy?”_

Ruby just nodded, her entire body lighting up with a different kind of energy. 

“What in the world…” The woman murmured.

“I think you might be my library soulmate.” Ruby said.

She had no idea someone could turn so red in such a short time, admiring the flush under the woman’s scar. Ruby was almost entertained, watching as she sputtered in the cutest kind of fluster. 

“Y-you can’t just _say_ that to someone!” She stammered.

Ruby’s confidence came roaring to life. She pouted. “So that means I can’t ask you out either?”

“I- what.” Blue eyes blinked rapidly, the very picture of an error message written in human form.

“I thought your name looked familiar. I’ve been reading the same books as you for almost a year straight.” Ruby tried not to show how much her palms were sweating, nerves shuffling in cold versus the warm wake of her momentary confidence. Predictably, her mouth started running without her permission.

“I think we have a lot in common and I’d like to get to know you and maybe possibly talk more about books when I don’t look like a scrub. You’re like, other-worldly gorgeous and you’re _so_ far out of my league but my sister says I can’t write anything off without trying it first and I figured I’d try it out y’know, benefit of the doubt and holy moly I’ve been talking for way too long-”

“You only know my name from the books we’ve read?” 

The woman spoke it more like a statement, almost like she couldn’t believe what she was saying.

“Um. I mean I’d like to know your first name. But, yeah.” Ruby gave in and brushed her palms down the front of her skirt, fingers starting to shake with adrenaline. 

“Weiss.” She replied absently. “Weiss Schnee.”

Ruby’s lips twitched into a nervous smile. “Ruby Rose.”

Weiss gave her a once over, the astonishment fading into something entirely different. Her gaze carried a weight to it that had Ruby’s palms sweating double time, her twitchy fingers immediately fiddling with her red cardigan.

“...Alright.” Weiss gave a slow, smooth smile. Ruby almost passed out.

“Wh- _really?”_

“Do you have a pen on you?”

“I- yes!”

Ruby all but evacuated the library ten minutes later, a number written on the back of her hand next to a clear, red lipstick stain. She nearly ran into a pole, but she knew it’d be ten thousand percent worth it. She couldn’t wait to see the look on Yang’s face.


End file.
